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Fungus is what a colony of leafcutter ants [Attaspp, Acromyrmex spp] eat. That's why they slice out leafy chunks with their scissor-sharp jaws. The leaves are so important to growing the underground fungus that small but ferocious guard ants ride atop the leaves that the cutters bring back to the colony. A colony may have 5 million members in a 25 foot [7.62 meters] nest that's divided into hundreds of small rooms.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 10y agoA basidiomycete is the type of fungus that leafcutter ants eat.
Specifically, the leaf-chewing ants in question (Acromyrmex and Atta spp) feed upon colonies of basidiomycetes in the fungal family Agaricaceae. But the fungus functions as food only for the ants in their larval stage. Leafcutter adults rely upon sap from the vegetation whose fresh flowery, grassy and leafy parts they remove.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoWiki User
∙ 13y agoim pretty sure ant eaters eat leaf cutter ants but im not sure =)
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Is fungus good for ants?
Very good for leaf cutter ants. They bring cut leaves back to their nest, chew them into tiny pieces and use them as a substrate to grow fungi which they feed to their larvae and eat themselves.
What is it called when a fungus takes over an ants mind and comes out of its head?
http://bytesizebio.net/index.php/2009/03/19/killer-fungi-and-zombie-ants/
Are anteaters herbivores?
No they aren't they eat ANTS!
Exsample sentence for the word fungus?
Mushrooms are a kind of fungus that people like to eat.
How can fungus be good for people?
Fungus is helpful because you can eat some of it like mushrooms.
Ants that eat fungus?
there are leafcutter ants!
What are Little farmers?
Leafcutter ants tending fungus "garden" - the fungus grows on the leaf material.
Is there any information about leafcutter ants?
If you get to close to them they will eat your eyeballs.
Where do leafcutter ants live?
Leaf cutter ants live in subterranean colonies, where they have chambers that contain their fungus gardens. They forage above ground to cut leaves to bring back to the colony to cultivate more fungus. These ants are native to Central and South America but there are some species that can be found as far North as Texas in the United States.
Why do Leaf cutter ants eat fungus?
Because the ants need to eat
Do ants eat tomatoes?
The ants in my garden are eating my tomatoes just as they ripen. The first few weeks I harvested plenty of tomatoes and then suddenly every time I went to pick the newly ripe fruit, the ants had beat me to it. Interestingly, they also ate the corn right off the cobs.....I have been very unhappy with ants this summer!!
Are leaf cutter ants omnivores?
Fungus for larvae and sap for adults are what leafcutter ants eat.Specifically, the ants in question (Acromyrmex and Atta spp) cut and transport fresh flowers, grasses and leaves. The fresh vegetation feeds colonies in the fungal family Agaricaceae. Leafcutter ants grow antimicrobial bacteria on their backs to keep the fungi pest-free and tasty. They imbibe the sap from foliage while foraging.
Where are leafcutter ants found?
they are found in the amazon ground
What type of insects do need to plant a garden?
Leafcutter ants have adopted a strategy of foraging on fungus that they culture on vegetation they bring into their nest for processing. A species of weevil (beetle) and termites practice a similar fungal mutualism.
Do amazon ants bite?
For starters, there's no such a thing as an 'Amazon Ant'. I will now tell you a lot of fun facts about ants that live in the Amazon. The Amazon rain forest contains at least 1,000 species of ant, most of which have never been formally described. Army ants are nomadic ants which travel in huge swarms, eating anything unlucky enough to be in their path. They DEFINITELY bite! Leafcutter ants don't actually eat the leaves they cut, they use the leaves to fertilize fungus farms in their nests, then eat the fungus. Some ants actually capture slaves from other colonies. The combined mass of all the ants on earth is roughly equal to the combined mass of all humans on earth. Some ants in the Amazon fall victim to a fungus that turns them into zombies. The fungus controls the mind of an ant, making it climb a tree, latch onto a leaf, and stay there. Eventually, the ant dies and the fungus grows out of the ant's head to release spores and infect more unsuspecting ants. These fungi can wipe out entire colonies of ants. Most species of ants bite to some extent.
What do trap jaw ants eat?
Trap jaw ants typically eat different types of fungus. However, they also will eat different types of leaves and vegetation.
Do leaf - cutter ants eat leaves?
They don't actually eat the leaves - because they cannot digest the cellulose. Instead - they take the pieces of leaf back to their 'nest' - and use them to grow fungus on them. They then eat the fungus.
